Sunday, June 03, 2007

A little storm named Barry dropped by Charleston today and knocked out power briefly just as I was finishing up this week’s questions. Because of an earlier commitment, I wasn’t able to redo them and post until later. But at least the power outage only lasted a few seconds.

But before the questions, Ingrid of "A Very Simple Life" was first to play last week. Congratulations, Ingrid!

Here are this week's "Saturday Six" questions. Either answer the questions in a comment over here, or put the answers in an entry on your journal...but either way, leave a link to your journal so that everyone else can visit! To be counted as "first to play," you must be the first player to either answer the questions in a comment or to provide a complete link to the specific entry in your journal in which you answer the questions. A link to your journal in general cannot count. Enjoy!

1. When did you last compute the average number of miles to the gallon your car gets?This afternoon ... 18.6, btw.2. Do you use regular, midrange or premium octane fuel?Regular fuel in the Saturn and the Suburban; premium fuel in the VW Touareg, much to my chagrin.3. If you had to give up one or the other because of a government-mandated fuel-saving law, would you prefer to go without your car’s air conditioning or automatic transmission?Well, giving up the automatic transmission will probably result in a net decrease in the overall fleet economy of the vehicles on the road, and I live where it's cool enough to get by most days without air, so the AC would be the sacrificial lamb in my case (as well as yours – government doesn't give choices).4. Take the quiz: What muscle car are you?Haven't I done this before? I haven't? Oh well...

5. Of the cars you have driven and/or owned, which had the worst gas mileage? Did that have any impact on your decision to get rid of it or make plans to get rid of it?The outright worst was a 1973 4WD ¾ ton pick-up with the 350 V8 and manual transmission towing a 5000 pound tractor and trailer. It got less than 7MPG in that configuration and was hell on clutch plates. By way of example, my 1978 ¾ ton pick-up with automatic transmission and a big block V8 with the same tractor and trailer would average 12 MPG. Sometimes bigger IS better. 6. On a scale of 1 to 10, with ten representing the most, how much will “environmental friendliness” have on your decision to buy your next vehicle?We just bought the used Suburban, even though it is less than “friendly” to the environment because we need a vehicle with trailer-towing capacity that is comfortable for long trips to places like Florida and Louisiana; it had to have 4WD to cope with the snow (they just don't like to plow the roads late in the evening when my wife gets off work and her safety is number one in my book) and the ability to handle a big load(s). We were thinking it was probably going to be a full-size Toyota Tundra pick-up, but this deal sort of dropped into our laps, so we grabbed it. Any other vehicle purchased will probably have to be pretty environmentally friendly, because we are used to a 28MPG commuter car for most of our driving and aren't going to be happy with TWO gas guzzlers in our stable. That probably (hopefully) won't be a topic of discussion for a few more years, if I can help it.

All Snooze ... All The Time!

About Me

Well past (by at least a decade) the half century mark. One foot in the grave, the other on a banana peel at the rim of the abyss and the view from here is disconcerting. I am a former student, pearl diver, cook, truck driver, firefighter, EMT, CEO, Town Fire Warden, mechanic, oiler, marine engineer and computer whiz bang. Mostly I sleep these days in an aluminum tube. And So It Goes...
I waste my time reading blogs and kvetching about the weather, playing with our Schipperke sidekick, Ignatz McGraw and waiting hand by foot upon my wife, the Queen of our Hovel, She Who Must Be Obeyed (SWMBO).

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There are many types of magic, but all require a sharp mind and a cool head. There is no puzzle I can't solve, no problem I can't think my way out of. When you feel confused or uncertain, you can always rely on me to untangle the knots and put everything back in order for you.